Audience measurement companies seek to determine the demographic composition of audiences exposed to various types of media (e.g., television, radio, internet, etc.). To this end, audience measurement companies enlist a plurality of persons to cooperate in an audience measurement study. The demographic data associated with these persons (hereinafter panelists) is collected at registration and used to statistically determine the size and demographics of a general audience.
Data reflecting media exposure can be collected through manual surveys or through automated methods that, for example, identify tuned channels and/or content. To perform automated collection of such exposure data, the audience measurement company installs one or more monitoring meters in the monitored household, and/or causes the panelist to carry a portable metering device.
In examples in which the exposures are collected via a stationary meter (as opposed to a portable meter carried by a specific panelist), people meter functionality is also provided in the panelist's household. The people meter collects audience identification data by periodically or aperiodically prompting audience members in the monitored household to identify themselves as present in the audience. The audience identification data and the exposure data can then be complied with the demographic data collected from the panelists during registration to develop metrics reflecting, for example, the demographic composition of the audience.